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 Randy Feenstra |
"There's going to have to be a lot of decisions made on how to either cut programs or cut tax credits to make a balanced budget," Feenstra said.
Feenstra, a Republican, said because he's heard other legislators want to eliminate all tax credits and that would be devastating especially in education.
For example, parents whose children attend a qualified private school can receive a tax credit of up to $250 for tuition and textbooks for each child.
"Education has been hit so hard already," Feenstra said. "We can't continue to hit them."
Other tax credits go toward businesses, entrepreneurs and energy efficiency, he said.
"It would really be a problem to the tax payers in Iowa to lose some of these tax credits," Feenstra said. "I think it's important that we keep some of the tax credits."
If all of them are eliminated, the state could save close to $250 million, Feenstra said.
Legislators are also considering a possible 5 percent cut across the board to help balance the budget -- something Feenstra is also against.
"We can't do that again," he said. "That is not good government."
It only hurts programs like Medicaid -- when it loses state funding it also loses its federal match, Feenstra said.
Neither can school districts withstand an additional 5 percent cut, he said.
"Our schools, whether it be Plymouth or Sioux County, as of next year will be in drastic trouble if the government doesn't do something different," Feenstra said.
In addition to the budget, another big issue legislators will need to resolve in the 2010 session has to do with unions, Feenstra said.
"One of the bills that might come up this year that really concerns me is that everyone should belong to a union if their school or business has a union," he said, of the right to work laws. "I believe that is simply wrong. Each person should have his own decision."
Feenstra also plans to address issues he's passionate about in the state in the upcoming legislative session like having a public vote as to whether Iowans think gay marriage should be legal
"The majority does not want the citizens to vote on this issue," Feenstra said. "I believe that we should let Iowa citizens vote and decide whether we should have gay marriage in this state."
Another issue Feenstra feels strongly about is creating a better "business-friendly" state.
"We need to advocate for lower rate commercial taxes to compete with our neighbors in South Dakota especially in northwest Iowa so we don't lose business to South Dakota," Feenstra said. "We just have to lower business taxes."
Although Democrats will have control of the Legislature in January, Feenstra, a Republican, hopes legislators won't just vote along party lines when making decisions.
"Last year I felt that the majority party wanted to do it all on their own," Feenstra said. "I believe a good form of government is a government that both parties work together for the best interest of the citizens."
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Um... lets see, lower taxes because we fear businesses leaving the state (reminder tough economic times, moving is expensive). We have a large deficit that we are unsure how we will pay for many of our supportive programs to the people and communities. And to top it off, we have a red herring in here about Gay Marriage. As a state representative, Gay Marriage should be one thing that they WANT because it only equals economic income (marriage licenses, divorce, gifts, all the marriage expenses). That is regardless of philosophical belief or religious belief. Some side effects of that could be argued as a bad thing. This was thrown in to set people off from the real problem, finances. How many businesses have we lost to South Dakota in the past 2 years, or even 5 years?
The real reason we are having economic problems in the state is that we have tax breaks that aren't doing what they were intended to do. There must be enough taxes to sustain the expenses or have supplements from other sources (federal government and the like). This is where prioritizing the budget expenses and income (taxes, fines, etc) requires a very detailed look.
The forced union scenario would easily be struck down as unconstitutional so it isn't a big deal, don't vote for it.
Business friendly state requires careful examination of how one defines it. Is it at the expense of the people? How about a people friendly state? After all it is the people who create business!
Good point!
ADF...... Can you give me an example of a State which has declared forced unionism unconstitutional? I agree that it is but it exists anyway.
yocal....When Mr. Feenstra refers to the "majority" he means the Democrats who control everything in DesMoines. The majority of Iowa's citizens want to vote on the gay marriage issue just as they have in California and Maine. (They voted it down by the way) Marriage is NOT a civil right. It is a legal agreement by law and is subject to legislative regulation and definition.
Sorry! I meant ADV! Momentary dyslexia.
Machiavelli, I don't have an example of a state having forced unionization. I do think it would fail miserably in any court.
ADV Union shop is essentially forced unionism and is perfectly legal in several States like Illinois without ANY objection by the Courts.
Yocal, if you would really think about the issue you would realize that a homosexual male ALREADY HAS an equal right to marry a female and vice-versa. What the Iowa Supreme Court did was to change to law to accomodate one sexual proclivity which is a stupid thing to do because where does it stop? Which, if any, such proclivities or preferences are you unwilling to change our laws to accommodate? If you name one, you are just as much a bigot as you seem to think I am. Can two cousins or two brothers get married? How about a man and his goat? Why don't we accommodate the Mormon faith and allow polygamy? If not, why?
The sexualaity of other people is none of my business, so why do they want to make it my business by demanding we change the law to suit them?
BTW Whose brainchild was it to require union membership? >The Democrat Party which controlls bothe Houses of the Legislature. This fact has been widely and quite loudly discussed for the last two years. How could you not know this?
Agreed!
But what doesn't make sense is, since gay marriage is already legal in Iowa, why did he introduce it in his speech? it was a diversion to change focus of the real problem.
My point is personal freedom and not having government infringe upon it. No individuals personal belief should take away from everyone elses ability to believe and practice differently provided it doesn't harm anyone else (sacrificing victims, etc).
While I am all for unionization of those who feel they want to belong to one, I am against forcing people into anything. I do feel that unions should be illegal in cases of public service as that is a conflict of interest. But that won't change until challenged...
The Ia Supreme Court knew exactly what it was doing when it redefined marriage and purposely changed a societal standard by fiat without the permission of society. Why do you want to deny your fellow Iowans the right to set the standard for the social contract of marriage by voting on it? Why don't you just come clean and admit that you just want to force your moral views on everyone else?
As I pointed out, a homosexual, before the court acted, already had the equal right to marry a person of the opposite sex. This cannot be denied. However the Court decided to accomodate one proclivity. So why not accomodate everyone in the same manner? You state that polygamy involves more than two people. Not really since the actual contract only involves one man and one woman outside of the other marriages the man is involved in. Even so, I fail to understand how allowing more than two people the rights associated with a legal union will affect you personally.
See how easy this is yocal? I can turn every argument you've made around on you. Be careful when you start accusing other people who simply have a different standard for societal norms than you do of being bigots or racists. More often than not, the biggest bigots/racists are those who are first to accuse others of being bigots/racists.
BTW- No I am not against interracial marriages, that was really lame. And I hope that the social regard for marriage in our country never reaches depths that it has in the Scandanavian countries.
machiavelli - If I wasn't married to a good man...wow...(fanning myself..LOL)
1. Unions are for workers too lazy or too stupid to get promoted.
2. Lets strip away the "Love" B.S. from the Gay marriage argument.
I have many Female friends that I love but have never wanted to have sex with them. My Husband has many male friends that he loves but has not wanted to have sex with them.
By this unconstitutional legalization of Queer marriage, this demented Iowa Supreme Court has forced the good moral citizens of the state of Iowa to accept a Man having anal intercourse with another Man.
That is a Fact.
Think about this...they smell like feces after "making love..?"
That is the Bottomline...(no pun intended):)
God help the State of Iowa...
BAAAHAHAHAHA...LOL
THIS is the best the left has to defend their perverted views!
Every Good and Moral Person needs TO QUIT worrying about offending these degenerates and pick up their "sword" (The Pen) and "slay" these intellectual pipsqueaks! LOL
OMGosh....funny..LOL
localyocal - Do you have any other bits of wisdom? PLEASE share if you do...!
Templeton (who believes in MANMADE GLOBAL WARMING!)..that includes you! LOL
Clearthinker, Your comments are highly charged. You are assuming that same sex marriage would require sex? Does a marriage require sex? I know a majority of people have sex after marriage (altho many people say it ends at marriage!) but it isn't required. Lets get back to the facts of the topic and avoid smearing. While i am not gay or lesbian, I have friends who are and have no problem with their lifestyle as it doesn't create any problems for me or most other people. The people who seem to have a problem with it are the ones wanting to take away freedoms. If you look closely at marriage in the US, you'll see it isn't even religious, but a contractual obligation to the state as a couple. Too bad we have such closed minded people who are not able to accept others unless they change towards a limited acceptance. This is accomplished by limiting the freedoms of the people. Too sad to see that acceptance by conformity is the way many people choose to believe.
By the way, the Iowa Senator seems to have done a great job of changing the focus of the problem by planting a diversion. Remember the problem was finances, taxes, and businesses. Instead we see an intolerance battle attempting to limit freedoms. Closed minds are the best way to enslaving and manipulation.
localyocal, our friend ClearThinker isn't someone you can have a reasonable discussion with. Anyone who disagrees with her is "far left" by her standards and instead of reason or facts, she opts for multiple "OMG"s and "LOL"s mixed in with generous self-aggrandizement regarding her (thus far unproven) superior intellect.
Feenstra is misinformed. Iowan homeschoolers do not receive a tax credit for doing so. In fact, homeschoolers are specifically excluded from tax credits aimed at educators and education expenses.
OMG...LOL!! Hahaha
localyocal - I apologize for hurting your feelings as I do recall you do have moments of clarity. I am sorry...BUT...you did accuse me of knowing what a Gay woman smells like..didn't you!!LOL :)
ADifferentView - After watching and studying your opinions and suggestions on absolutley EVERY SINGLE BORING story the Sentinel posts I don't see any difference in view from Templeton(who believes in MANMADE Global Warming! LOL) OR his main source of information...CNN. Prove me wrong.
To the one who is beyond saving - Templeton(who believes in MANMADE Global Warming! LOL) - Nice to see you stick your head out of your Socialist Hole (His Blog) once in a while! Let me give you a tip...IF you REALLY and I mean REALLY want to insult me...call me an Intellectual OR a Democrat.
UlrikeDG - Good Catch!
The moral decay of a country always preceeds it's ultimate fall.
Someone needs to check facts before speaking. Homeschoolers do not recive any tax credits.
It's funny how some folks are all about "smaller government" until it comes to having the government in your bedroom, legislating morality and determining what kind of legal contracts we can have between ourselves. Apparently helping Americans afford health care is Socialism, but denying rights to subordinate groups in the populations is FREEDOM!
This kind of rhetorical gay bashing is just a method to keep voters minds off of their actual legislation in the Statehouse. It's called "appeal to emotion" and they know that certain types of bigotry sell well in Northwest Iowa. They know this is a judicial branch issue, but many of us don't know that or don't care. Stoking the fires of bigotry gets votes.
Clearthinker, you seem to have some issues going on. I do not subscribe to cable nor satelite tv, and I rarely watch tv (1-2 hours per month max) so CNN would not be a source for me. Similarities of views with others is true, but many times not. (ask LocalYocal, we dissagree from time to time, and TJ and I have had a few disagreements too). I value both Localyocal and TJ's opinions as they try to back their views and do so in a way that is respectful of others. I wonder why you read the Sentinel posts if their articles are boring. Prove you wrong? Nothing to prove to you.
I do have a personal question for you tho... How is it that being married to your husband, are you so aware of what gay men smell like after sex, or lesbian? You tend to put them down, yet you are so intimate with it. Can you explain this?
I just consulted the local chapter of gay sex havers and the overwhelming consensus was that they smelled like a light northern Californian chardonnay. But I don't know if CT can confirm that.
(I must have touched a nerve with the degenerates...shhh..LOL)
(ok we will be vewwwy quiet for you. Touched yourself you say?)